Shattered
by Em Gi
Summary: Set in Destined, Jessica Catanach's life is thrown into chaos when she gets marked. But, she's not your typical blue fledgling. She's something completely new and dangerous. Rated T just in case.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1 – Love and Hate

Ugh. I hated going to school. I'm not saying this bluntly, I truly despise school. All the social circles, sports, annoying teachers, you get the idea. All of those things can be found in SIHS. I've been going here for two years and I've hated every second. The only thing that I like is Rugby. Why? It's self-explanatory because of the violence.

I sighed as I made my way to the front doors and into the crowded halls. It was only 8:15AM, meaning there was football practice at 8:30AM. School today actually doesn't start until 9:00AM and ends at 3:45PM in Broken Arrow. I shoved and pushed my way through the groups of people until I reached my cluttered locker. I mindlessly dumped my books and backpack in and grabbed my gym bag. I slammed my locker shut and walked to the change rooms. Obviously no one was here, so I just changed in the open into my black gym shorts, baggy white t-shirt and running shoes. I chucked my bag into one of the lockers and sat on a bench. I've been alone all my life, so loneliness is comforting in my perception.

I'm an orphan; my parents were serial killers and sent to jail when I was six. Before then, they taught me how to fight and kill. It was the 'family legacy', can you believe it? When the police caught them, they sent me to foster care. Eight foster homes, four schools and the same annoyingly peppy people. I can't wait until I'm 18 in two years, so I can FINALLY escape this horrendous foster cycle.

Suddenly, I heard the door open. It was probably a group of girls trying to get people to come to football practice, "I'm not going to watch the practice! So, leave." No one responded, but someone walked in and stood a few feet away from me. It was a guy. I sighed and stood up, "God, are you blind? This is the _girls' _change room, so get out before you're lying on the ground with a broken nose!" I raised my fist beside my head to show I wasn't bluffing.

He fidgeted, "Sorry, I really don't have a choice here." His voice was silky and smooth, unlike every other guy at this school. I shook my head, confused.

"What do you mean choice?" He took a deep breath and took off his hood. Wow, he wasn't as ugly as I expected. In fact, he was pretty hot. But, I'm not one to fall in love. Then, I saw it. The crescent tattoo was smack in the middle of his forehead. Before I could say anything his ceremonial words sliced through the room and could've easily blocked a train.

"Jessica Catanach! Night has chosen thee; thy death will be thy birth. Night calls to thee; hearken to Her sweet voice. Your destiny awaits you at the House of Night!" He pointed one finger at me and I stumbled backwards, pain surging through me and crumbled on the bench. Great, I'm a fledgling now. I heard the Vampyre walking up to me and bending beside me, "Are you okay?"

I groaned and flipped over, brushing the hair off my face. "I think so. My head is killing me and I have this weird burning feeling in my forehead. But, I feel fine otherwise." I opened my eyes and saw him staring at me with an expression I couldn't place. Shock? Terror? Confusion? It was all there. "What is it?" I sat up and he took a step back. He pointed at the full-length mirror by the door. I walked to the mirror and looked at myself. The girl in the mirror was different from the one I've seen before. Her silky, straight dark crimson hair still reached to her lower back. She was still the same height: five foot nine. Her lips were still a natural light shade of pink. Her nose was still straight like her mother's. Her eyes were a very light blue, but now they were so pallid that they looked like ice. Her skin was always pale and it still was, but it seemed colourless compared to the shadowy black crescent moon in the middle of her forehead.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – Beginning

"Isn't it supposed to be sapphire?" I turned around to see the Vampyre pacing back and forth, muttering to himself.

"Yeah it is! Oh, Goddess. Can I do anything right? First red and now black? Why do I fail at everything?!" He threw himself at the bench and hung his head down. I sighed and walked up to him, patting his back awkwardly. "Okay," He stood up and looked at me, "I'm taking you to Thanatos." He suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the change rooms. No one was in the halls, so he just dragged me outside to his car and threw me inside. The Vampyre got in the driver's seat and started the car. Before I knew it, we were driving to the Tulsa House of Night.

"Okay, you better tell me what the h*ll you're doing!" I hissed at him.

"I guess I should bring you up to speed. Thanatos is a High Priestess from the Vampyre High Council visiting from Venice. I would take you to Neferet, the High Priestess of our House of Night. But, she's evil." Evil? What the h*ll? "There's a bunch of fledglings and a few Vampyres that have red marks. If you're around them, then you'll figure out why your mark is black." I was stunned silent. Red Fledglings? Is that even possible? "I'm Erik Night by the way."

"Jessica." I said quickly and stared out the window. In half an hour, we arrived at the House of Night. Erik parked beyond the gates and stepped out of the car. I got out when I realized something, "Can I change?"

"After you meet Thanatos, come on!" He grabbed my arm and again dragged me to a huge building. Outside the doors was a woman, Vampyre I presumed, with three suitcases. Erik led me up to her and oh my god. I knew Vampyres had otherworldly beauty and whatnot, but this woman was too gorgeous for words. She smiled at me and spoke angelically, "Jessica Catanach, Nyx has a role for you in the battle between Light and Darkness." She looked at Erik who shifted uncomfortably, "and whether you like it or not Erik; Nyx has a role for you as well."

"Thanatos, what do you mean?" She smiled warmly at my question, "It will be revealed in time…"

"I suspected a new fledgling would be marked this morning."

The doors behind Thanatos opened to reveal another stunning Vampyre. God, how many of them are there? She looked at me and smiled, but it was a fake one. I've been putting those on for as long as I remember, I know one when I see one. "Dear Jessica, you are aware you have been marked and you will begin your new life at the House of Night."

"Neferet, I believe her mentor should be Dragon." That was Neferet! The evil Vampyre? Holy cr*p, I'm in trouble.

"I agree and I believe she is going to be living in the tunnels with the other fledglings." I looked at her completely dumbfounded and she fake-smiled at me. "You will still attend this school, but you will live in the tunnels."

"Um, Neferet? Thanatos?" They both looked at me, "I think I should change into something more appropriate for this weather." It was late February. I. Was. Freezing.

"Of course! All your clothes and shoes are in these two suitcases." Neferet pointed to said suitcases and I bent beside it. I opened one and found all my shoes, make-up and jewellery. I grabbed a pair of boots, my make-up bag and some jewellery. I shut the suitcase and opened the other one that had all my clothes. I grabbed a jacket, shirt and jeans then shut the case and went in the building. Luckily, the washrooms were close to the entrance. I went in to one of the four empty stalls and changed into my midnight blue jean jacket, strapless scarlet shirt (alliteration, woo hoo) and my basic blue skinny jeans. I went out of the stall and put on my _light_ silver eye shadow, my _light_ gray eye liner, my skin matching foundation, and some sparkly red lip gloss. I put on my sterling silver chained necklace, my crescent moon earrings (ironic I had these before huh?) and my silver watch. I grabbed my stuff and ran back to the three vampyres who were talking and put my stuff back.

"Erik," said Thanatos. "We'll take your car to the Depot. Neferet, I can handle this, you can rest."

Neferet took a quick breath and replied, "Thank you, Thanatos. I am quite tired after all." Neferet silently turned around and strode away to another building. Each of us took one of my suitcases and walked back to the car. We put them in the trunk and climbed in the car. Thanatos sat beside Erik calling someone named Darius; I couldn't make the conversation so I just sat quietly.

Who were these special fledglings? What could they do? What were their powers? My mind bombarded me with countless questions that hurt my head. I silenced my head and cleared the pain as I leaned back and shut my eyes, falling into a dream.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 – Not Again

_It was that dream again. The reoccurring dream I've had for ten years every single night. I never told anyone because I'd get sent to therapy or a mental hospital. I've never gone one night or nap without this dream. It never changes._

_I'm always sitting on the edge of a rocky cliff. A lush forest is behind me and the gorge below me is too deep to see the bottom. I'm wearing a black strapless dress decorated with sparkles almost as if the stars had been stitched on. It was midnight and only the silver crescent moon hung in the sky. I was sitting without a care in the world when I heard noises in the trees behind me. I stood up and turned around, not a sound. Then, something came out of the bushes. I wanted to shriek, but my dream self stayed calm. It was hideous! Was it a raven or man? It was both. A grotesque raven creature with the red eyes and limbs of a man was walking up to me. My dream self was obviously batsh*t crazy thinking that walking up to this raven hybrid was a good idea. The raven went on his knees, "Do not do this."_

_The words that came out weren't mine. "It must be done. You know he cannot let anything control him. Not his anger, not the darkness, just his judgement." I turned away from him and stared down the gorge. I took a few paces to the edge and closed my eyes. My weight rapidly increased and it pulled me down the gorge._

_The next part was always hazy. I'm falling down the gorge, still no end in sight. Then, I see blue. It was a lake surrounded by rocky tundra. Everything is still blurry and moving fast. I felt impact. I crashed into the water, air escaping me. Blood came out of my mouth and the salty water scratched against my lungs and skin causing my blood to sink with me. I gasped for air, but only got water. I was drowning in blood and saltwater. My eyes burned and my vision blurred. My back felt the bottom of the lake at the same time everything turned white._

_The last part was super confusing and murky. I could feel myself still drowning, but I saw something other then saltwater. In the mist, there was a huge rock that almost looked like a closed cave. There were countless more of those raven creatures standing before it. But, in front of the ravens was me. I was looking at myself, completely drenched in saltwater and blood. She was dead. One of the ravens stood beside me and spoke, "Your actions will not be disregarded, Xanclair. They will be remembered through time." The Ravens all stared at the rock and I watched them from behind them. I felt my self falling in the water again and the familiar bloody scratching sensation overcame me. I fell away from the scene as it faded in the fog and I died._

I woke up with a huge gasp for air as I always do and Thanatos looked at me, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." She didn't buy it but she turned around anyways.

"We're here!" Erik parked the car and we all got out. I took two of my suitcases and Erik took the other one. Thanatos was walking ahead of us, calling someone else.

"Hey Erik." Erik looked at me, "Yeah?"

"Aren't fledglings allowed to change their name?"

"Yup, you want to change your name?"

I gave it some thought, "Aurora Catanach."

**Hey! I'm probably not gonna be able to update for a while cause I'm going to be busy for the next few weeks. And by the way, Xanclair is pronounced SHAN-Clair.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi there! Long time no see, eh? Well, it took me a while because my computer shut down and deleted half of this chapter! Ugh. Stupid Technology. Enough bitterness, on with this! **

Chapter 4 – Shadows

The two vampyres led me down into the tunnels; I'd heard about them before at school but never thought they were real. We travelled down through the darkness, passing what I would assume to be rooms until we reached one that looked like a kitchen. Thanatos said something to Erik and then she looked at me, "Stay here and don't go anywhere." They both swiftly left the room.

"Woof." I said sarcastically. I'm not an idiot. I sat near the darkest corner of the room. All this was so much to take in. I'd been an outcast all my life, so I was used to being alone. Now there were a bunch of other freaks like me I'm supposed to live with?

"Not to mention the freaks live in tunnels. Predictable." I snorted quietly and sighed. What would it be like to have someone that cares about you? Who knows. I only had my grandparents who cared about me. My Mom's Dad lived far away and my Dad's Mom lived far away as well. So, I had a Scottish grandfather and a Native grandmother. I would always visit them in the summer and they taught me a lot of things about their people. Grandma taught me the Cherokee language and countless legends and rituals. Grandfather told me that I was a descendant from the Clan Chattan, from his stories it was said to be one of the first clans that untied with the Vampyres when they were fighting the Clan Cameron. Grandpa said most of the legends were lost to history.

"Ironic huh? Am I apart of the Chattan or am I a creature supporting them?" I laughed humourlessly. "Who knows?" Since my parents were caught and I was sent into Foster Care, I haven't seen them at all. I stood up and leaned my back against the wall knowing I'd be here for a while.

_Swoosh! _An icy breeze blew from the east. It wasn't bone-chilling, but it made me shiver enough to button my jacket. _Swoosh! _There it was again! I looked to my right and saw the draft was coming from a stone wall. Okay, what? I turned to the shadows and lifted my hand to touch it. I pressed my palm against the wall but, I didn't feel any draft; I felt something else. Energy buzzed through me, it didn't bring me any pain but it caused me to stumble back a few steps. I stared at the strange darkness and thought: _Maybe there's a bunch of wires or something? _I decided to ignore it. But, when I leaned back, I heard something. Whispers. Wordless sounds coming from the shadows almost as if they were coaxing me to go to them. I took a step to the shadows and touched it again. The shadow rippled as it met my hand. It was almost like a portal…no it couldn't be. Well, it's worth a try. I shut my eyes and let my hand slowly move to the wall. As soon as my arm had been stretched out completely, I opened my eyes and my arm was in the wall. It had to lead somewhere, so I shut my eyes leaped forward. It was like falling into a pool of water, but instead of water on the other side there was air. I fell smack on the ground face-first. I groaned in pain and sat up; there was a weird prickly feeling in my mark. I opened my eyes sluggishly to have them widen in shock.

Black. Everything was black, but it was almost laid out like one of those super long halls in those huge museums. But, there weren't any pictures. Instead, there were countless deformed white rings of light against the eastern and western walls. The hall seemed to go on forever, both north and south. Where am I?

Then, I heard muffled voices. I looked around and no one was there but, I realized the voices were coming from one of the rings. I followed the sound to a somewhat box-like ring and pressed my ear against it and listened.

"Okay, Erik. What was so important that you had to wake us up at 9:00 AM?" It was a girl who sounded particularly sleepy and irritated.

"Yeah, shoot." A guy yawned and you didn't have to be a genius to know he was tired out of his mind.

"I marked a girl this morning, but her mark was black." That girl was me!

"A black mark? Is that even possible?" said a sweet but super tired girl.

"Was a vampyre with a red mark possible, Stevie Rae?" said Thanatos.

"Yeah, but what makes a Black fledgling different from us?" replied Stevie Rae.

"I'd like to know that myself." I muttered. "Why was I even marked? Why is my mark different? Why did the shadows open to me?..." I went on and on until I fell on my knees and hands hopelessly. "I wish someone would tell me…"

_That's why I'm here, daughter._

I raised my head and saw her. She lit up the frigid blackness with her luminescent beauty. Her hair seemed to be made of the twinkly stars in the night sky. Her eyes were a deeper black than this hall and she wore a form-fitting moon-white dress that flowed along the darkness. I could just see a sapphire filled in crescent moon on her forehead, but even though she had only been standing there for a few seconds she already seemed transparent. A memory tickled my mind and led me to my Grandpa's cabin all the way in Napa Valley, California.

Grandpa lived on a pretty steep hill, but he loved it because it gave him the best view of the sunrise. I would spend lazy summer days there while my parents were out 'hunting' (psycho much?) while I stayed there. One early morning, I was eating breakfast while Grandpa was talking.

_"__Vampyres are very spiritual, Jessie." Grandpa always called me that._

_"__Do they have a God or Goddess? Like the Great Earth Mother?" 5-year old me asked._

_"__Yes. Her name is Nyx." _

The words echoed in my head and snapped me back to reality, "You're Nyx!" I blurted.

_Yes, daughter. That is the face I wear before you._

"But, where am I? Why did you mark me?" The questions escaped my lips as Nyx smiled warmly at me.

_You stand in the Realm of Shadows. Every shadow on the Earth leads to here._

"And they're like portals."

_Correct, daughter. Shadows are always watching us and can be passed through by selected few._

"Why did you choose me though?" I blurted as I stood up.

_You have met with Darkness before and that has left trances within your soul. But, you are a link to the past, Aurora. That link will determine whether Light can succeed or not. _

I was silent for a moment and then asked, "How do the Shadows work?"

_It is simple, but requires much strength. Face the shadow behind you and release the power inside you._

I turned around and shut my eyes. I drew the prickling from my mark to my hands. I raised my palms and focussed everything I had. I tensed my self and opened my eyes. A blazing ray silver light beamed from my palms to the ring and made a hole of white light that slowly started expanding.

I was breathless, but ecstatic. "I did it!" I turned around to Nyx's loving gaze.

_Well done, daughter. This is one of your powers in your unique affinity. Your affinity for Night._

"One power? What about the others?"

_As with all my children, you must find your own path where they reside. Remember Aurora, you have my love and trust. Darkness will come for you, but if you exercise your powers they can't harm you. Just know that the past may hurt now, but if allowed so it may destroy your future._

Then, the Great Goddess, Nyx disappeared in a blinding flash of light. Leaving me, wishing I was still in Napa.

**I made this chapter a little longer because summer's almost over and I'm probably going to be updating like once a month? Sorry, but you know how school is. Well, feed back is always appreciated! And until then, Em Gi out.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey! It's me! I should be studying right now for a Math Quiz, but I choose to write this instead. My mark may suffer for all of you. By the way, if you're a StarkxZoey fan, you're gonna like the end of this chapter. Enjoy :)**

Chapter 5 – Collisions

It had been a few minutes after Nyx disappeared and my feet seemed planted in the ground. I finally made myself move back to the box-like ring which had now been filled with white light. Slowly, the light was replaced with an image.

It was in the tunnels and several people (or should I say fledglings and vamps) were standing around, some even sitting, looking tired as hell. Thanatos and Erik were there and were the only people who didn't seem sleepy. Beside Thanatos was a pretty Cherokee girl standing with a guy who I couldn't see because his head was leaning against her shoulder. A girl with curly blonde hair was leaning against a wall along with a cute guy, but cute in a different way. Hmmm….not worth the thought. Also, there was a tall, built guy standing beside Thanatos looking…oddly professional. Two girls were standing a few steps away from Erik and whispering to each other while throwing some judgemental looks at him. Hey! I do NOT like him! If anything he's kind of annoying.

"Okay, whoever this dark fledgling is," said the Cherokee girl, "Neferet's gonna want to use her power."

"Shit!" Everyone looked at Erik, "She already saw her mark."

"That's not good." said the blonde girl whose voice I recognised to be Stevie Rae as Thanatos said. "Remember how she used the Red fledglings for her own evil services?"

Evil services? That vamp I saw is evil and wants to take over the world, I'm assuming? C'mon, that's a valid guess. Why couldn't I not be marked and just lived with my Grandpa? Why couldn't my parents be normal? Just…why Nyx? Why…

~Zoey's Point of View~

"I know Stevie Rae, at least we got her first," I said. Jeez, didn't I have enough stress to deal with?

_I'm a person. Not an object._

Huh? What was that? I looked around confused along with everyone else. The words seemed like a hollow, mysterious whisper and echoed through the room.

"Who was that?" Damien asked looking a little scared.

_Ohhh…now I know what Nyx meant by finding my own path._

"Nyx?" I whispered. "Alright, who are you?"

"Aaaah!" A vibration shook the ground. I looked to the wall close to Stevie Rae and saw someone face down on the ground. Did she come out of the wall? She struggled to stand up as she held her hand to her face. Wow, she had really nice hair. Most Redheads usually have hair that's all frizzy, but her hair was silky and a sleek dark crimson and it covered her face. She groaned and muttered angrily to herself.

"Can I catch any break today? First, I get a headache from being marked. Then, I'm drowning in my dream. Then, I fall through a wall and now this?" She brushed her hair out of her face and there it was. A black crescent outline. So, Erik wasn't lying to piss me off as the Twins said earlier.

"Aurora?" Erik said, "Did you just come out of the wall?"

"_No, _Erik. I walked in." She said sarcastically as she rolled her eyes.

"So, how did you do that?" asked Stevie Rae.

"I don't know! First, I fall into a wall and find myself in the Realm of Shadows. Then, Nyx appears-"

"Wait, Realm of Shadows? How did you know where you were?" Damien asked.

"That's what Nyx told me." She folded her arms.

"Okay, what did Nyx say?" I tried my best not to be inconsiderate because she's probably hell-annoyed right now.

"She taught me how to use the portal-like shadows and she said that I'm a link to the past and that link will determine whether Light will succeed. Whatever that means."

I exchanged glances with everyone. We all knew what that meant.

"Well, that means you're-" Shaunee said.

"-pretty damn important." Erin finished for her.

It was then I realised everyone was staring at her mark. I knew that feeling of being the main event of the freak show. Then, people just know you as this super significant person and not you yourself.

Aurora seemed to notice too. "Oh, I'm sorry. I don't see any of you staring at each other and many of you have different marks. Yet, you choose to gawk at me." She said in a very bitchy tone. We were all quiet for a moment, but it didn't last long thanks to the Twins.

"Ah shit Twin, I didn't think it was possible." Erin said.

"Me neither Twin. But, it looks like our worst nightmare has come to life." Shaunee replied.

"What do you mean?" Damien asked.

They looked at each other and then back at him, "Aphrodite has a twin."

"Oh my gosh! You're right!" I blurted. How could I not see how similar they are?

"C'mon guys. Aphrodite's a little more…umm…" Stevie Rae trailed off, thinking.

"Nasty."

"Rude."

"Controlling."

"Vexing."

"Unique."

"Hag bitch-"

"-from HELL!"

"I was gonna say insensitive." Stevie Rae muttered indignantly.

"Okay, people. SHUSH!" Aurora hissed and shut everyone up. "You shouldn't be talking about some hag from hell as I heard. You should be discussing about how you're going to deal with that psycho bitch vampyre!"

"I agree with Aurora," Thanatos chimed in. "What will you all do if Neferet tries to manipulate her power?"

An uneasy silence filled the room. Here we're bickering about Aurora's attitude and not thinking of Neferet's extreme schemes. How would we even begin to deal with Neferet if we have no idea what she's planning?

"Thanatos," Stark yawned. "We can't come up with a plan when it's so early! Can we sleep?"

Thanatos let out a small sigh, but smiled and nodded. "Of course, you all should rest. You're going to face trouble tonight." She strode out as Erik followed her.

"So, now what?" We all turned back to Aurora.

"Now, I'll find you a room where you can sleep." Stevie Rae chirped and picked up one bag as Aurora picked up the others. Aurora left the room and so did Stevie Rae, but she poked her head through the door, "Y'all get some rest. Who knows what we're gonna see tonight."

Everyone slowly departed leaving Stark and me alone. Stark had collapsed into bed and I slid next to him. I softly put his head in my neck, kind of like when we first slept together. But, back then I was worried about driving Kalona from my home. Now, my 'home' was a place where I was most vulnerable to my worst enemy. It was strange. Looking back my worst problems were taking down Aphrodite, healing Stevie Rae, dealing with my pissed off friends, juggling three boyfriends and Heath…..always Heath.

"If you keep stressing, neither of us are sleeping."

I jumped at Stark's voice and looked down. His head was tilted a little just so I could see his warm eyes staring at me.

"You could just not listen to my thoughts." I muttered

"Heath."

"Huh?"

"You were thinking about Heath."

I mentally sighed. I felt bad for him. To be in love with a girl who was still mourning the death of her consort and that they had a connection, a bond, he could never replace…

Then, it hit me. I could've saved him. If I never went to Starbucks and created that imprint. If I never met him face to face to break up(which was a failure). If I just told him that it was over and I didn't want him to get hurt. I'd rather never see him again and let him live safely, then involve him in this mess that is my life and watch h-him d-d-die…

Tears spilled out of my eyes and I started bawling my eyes out. I felt Stark shift around so he was holding me in his arms, speaking soothing sounds.

"I-i-it's my f-fault…" I said between sobs, "H-H-Heath's dead b-bec-cause of me…"

"No, Zoey." Stark lifted my head to meet his face, "Kalona killed Heath."

"But, it's my fault!" I sobbed brokenly, "I let him in my new life! And because of that he's dead!"

"No, he let himself in your life. No matter how much you pushed him away, he kept coming back. He loved you, an almost unbreakable love…"

I realised how sad he sounded. "I've hurt you too…"

My words surprised him, "Yes, you have. But, your love can heal anything. Even the wounds given by you."

I just stared at him and tried my best to smile as he wiped my face with some tissues. I shifted so he could put an arm around my back. I put a hand gently on his cheek and stared in his gorgeous brown eyes. I caused him so much pain and it's my job to heal as much of it as I can.

_Spirit, come to me. _I felt the mystical element flow through my veins. _Help me heal the suffering Stark has been through. Most of it is because of me and so I must heal it. _

I tenderly kissed his cheek and watched Spirit swirl around us like a sparkling purple breeze. I felt it rise from my toes to my head to it pouring into Stark. His body tensed up for a second, but soon relaxed as I broke kiss and moved to kiss his eyelid. I kept kissing his face just letting Spirit soothe him when his grip on me tightened. I jerked in his arms as he moved so he was looking down at me from a 45 degree angle.

"Thank you, Zoey." His voice seemed to echo around me, "I love you…"

His words made me so happy. I could really heal his pain with love. He was about to kiss me when I turned to hug him. "I love you too…" He gingerly stroked my hair and I gradually separated the hug and stared into his eyes. Stark inched closer and turned so his head was just above mine. He finally kissed me and I felt Spirit filling me with peace and warmth. Okay, I've kissed Stark before. Hell, I've even done _it _with him, multiple times! But, this kiss was different. It was filled with Spirit and for the first time since I was marked, I felt complete serenity. I know I've said that before, but this time it was like nothing else mattered. It was just him and me and love. Always love…

I felt a hint of sadness when our lips parted. I put his head in my neck like it was before and for once, fell asleep in what I knew to be total tranquility.

I should've made more of it because it didn't last long.

**Dun dun da! What'd ya think? Could I be a Romance Author or what? Even if it's fan fiction. Oh, well. Now, my story will be changing perspectives. Next Chapter, you'll see Aurora (duh), bit of Stark and some Stevie Rae. This is the entry for September! Next one will be in October. See you then! ~Em Gi**


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